


'til Somebody Loves You

by Lucky107



Series: The Wanderer [11]
Category: Fallout 3
Genre: Broken Steel, F/M, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-26
Updated: 2016-06-26
Packaged: 2018-07-18 09:05:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7308649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lucky107/pseuds/Lucky107
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cassidy remembers nothing - save this damn headache - but a ticklish warmth dances across her skin.</p>
            </blockquote>





	'til Somebody Loves You

**Author's Note:**

> You're Nobody till Somebody Loves You - Dean Martin - 1964

As the white light clears, revealing a crack ceiling in the distance, the dull ache in Cassidy's skull begins to ebb its way back into focus.  It feels as if she's been hit over the head with something - hard - and lapsed into a momentarily unconscious state of mind.  
  
A shadow hovers just out of view.  "Have you finally woken, child?"  
  
It's Elder Lyons, she confirms, though his voice sounds distant and fuzzy.  She struggles to decipher where he's gone, turning her face only a fraction while searching her blurry field of sight.  
  
Cassidy remembers nothing - save this damn headache - but a ticklish warmth dances across her skin.  She thinks she can remember Sarah Lyons' voice, but the words are lost and the mission details are gone.  Project Purity and the Enclave... everything is locked away behind this pain in her head.  
  
"You need to rest," Elder Lyons insists, halting a protesting Cassidy with a single hand.  "You're still recovering from the radioactive blast.  Please, be still."  
  
The old medical cot isn't exactly comfortable, but it feels good to finally be conscious again - alive - so she obeys the aging man's desire and rests back against her pillow.  "... It's over?"  
  
"You took a great risk entering that memorial with Sarah," Elder Lyons confirms.  "Now, you must understand the magnitude of this new world you have created and accept responsibility for the thousands of lives that you have taken into your care.  I only wish I could say the same for my daughter, but being able to have this conversation with you has given me hope."  
  
Before Cassidy has a chance to ask after Sarah's well-being, the door slides open and steals their attention away from the conversation at hand.  
  
Standing in the doorway is Cassidy's companion, Butch DeLoria.  
  
Elder Lyons chides, "Be gentle, Mr. DeLoria.  Your friend is very lucky to be alive and she still has a lot of recovery ahead of her."  
  
The two men - no more than strangers - swap spots for Cassidy's company and Elder Lyons excuses himself quietly.  Once the door slides shut and the two are alone for the first time in just over two weeks, Butch demands, "What the hell were you thinking, going there alone?"  
  
"I wasn't... alone," Cassidy replies.  "And the people... they deserve this."  
  
"You lied to me," he reminds her, raising his voice despite himself.  "You told me you were running an errand with that Super Mutant friend of yours.  You told me it would only take a couple of days, but you disappeared for a week - a week! - and I had to come here to find out that you were in a coma the entire time!"  
  
Despite the outburst, Elder Lyons does not return to the room.  Likewise, Cassidy remains silent - despite her fiery nature - and she allows Butch to let his feelings out because he's not wrong.  She was stupid to lie to him and she was stupid for thinking he shouldn't be a part of everything in her life, especially the important things.  No matter where this life takes her, she knows Butch will gladly tag along for the ride - and she was so stupid for not seeing that sooner.  
  
"Man, when they told me you had already been out a week, I—"  He stops short of completing his thought, raw emotion leaving his voice a trembling quiver.  "—I didn't think you were ever going to wake up again."  
  
With a small beckon, Butch moves to sit on the bedside and he gathers Cassidy up into a gentle embrace.  Cassidy uses whatever strength she's got in her to wrap her arms around him, snug and secure.  Quietly, she whispers, "... I'm so sorry."  
  
The soft tickle of Cassidy's hair against his cheek and the warmth of her scrawny arms around his shoulders set butterflies free in his stomach - this is real.  Cassidy is alive, right here in front of him, and she's made the impossible possible for thousands of people in the wasteland.  
  
What in the world does she have to apologize for?  
  
"Don't be."


End file.
